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Archives for August 2016

AL Central Notes: Zimmermann, Fulmer, Sano

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Tigers fans braced for bad news after right-hander Jordan Zimmermann exited his first start since returning from the DL due to a potential lat injury, but an MRI came back clean, tweets MLB.com’s Jon Morosi. Detroit is optimistic that Zimmermann can avoid a return trip to the disabled list following the positive news, though yesterday’s six-run shellacking still comes with a fair amount of concern. Zimmermann now has a 7.30 ERA across his past 49 1/3 innings, which isn’t doing the Tigers any favors as they look to close a three-game gap for the division lead in the AL Central and a half-game deficit in the race for the second American League Wild Card slot.

A bit more from the division….

  • Flying somewhat under the radar amid the considerable chatter surrounding Aaron Sanchez’s innings total is the workload of AL Rookie of the Year candidate Michael Fulmer, as MLB.com’s Jason Beck writes. In the case of Fulmer, however, his uncanny efficiency — he’d rank 10th in the league in terms of fewest pitches per inning if he qualified — has the Tigers more focused on limiting his pitch counts on a start-to-start basis than taking a more general approach and monitoring his innings. A 25 to 30 percent increase in innings would cap Fulmer, who has thrown 119 1/3 innings between Triple-A and the Majors, at between 155 and 162 innings, but his low pitch counts could allow him to exceed that count in the event of a lengthy postseason run for Detroit.
  • Demoting struggling slugger Miguel Sano is a “real option” for the Twins, writes Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The Twins will get Trevor Plouffe back from the disabled list after this weekend series, and Sano’s recent woes in the field have been difficult to ignore. Of course, the Twins certainly compounded the issue by moving Sano to the outfield in the first place when it was clear even after last season that he had some work to do on his defense at third base, and asking him to move back to third midseason after not taking many reps there since last year has indeed yielded ugly results. Sano has made 12 errors in 27 games at third base this year. “He’s trying to make the changes that he needs to make to where he can walk out of here every day saying he did what he could do that day to become a better player,” said manager Paul Molitor. “It doesn’t happen every day, I’m sure.”

Blue Jays Going To Six-Man Rotation; Aaron Sanchez To Continue Starting

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After months of debate surrounding emerging Blue Jays ace Aaron Sanchez, the team has made the decision to deploy a six-man rotation featuring Sanchez, Marcus Stroman, J.A. Happ, Marco Estrada, R.A. Dickey and newly acquired Francisco Liriano, per Toronto GM Ross Atkins (via Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi).

As Davidi points out, the solution isn’t perfect, as even with a six-man structure, Sanchez figures to make another eight starts or so, which would push him to 180 innings even if he tossed only five innings per outing. That wouldn’t factor in the postseason, either, and an ideal scenario for Toronto would include Sanchez starting well into a deep postseason run. It’s a similar conundrum that the Mets faced with Matt Harvey last season, though Sanchez isn’t coming back from Tommy John. Rather, he’s simply looking at a massive increase in his workload after throwing a total of 133 1/3 innings in 2014 (a career high) and an even smaller total of 102 innings in 2015. President of baseball operations Mark Shapiro recently told the media that there’s “no scenario” in which Sanchez would be allowed to pitch 220 to 230 innings, and indeed Atkins said that the team plans on avoiding such an extreme spike in his innings.

Atkins suggested to reporters that in addition to the six-man rotation, the Jays will be able to leverage expanded rosters in September in order to perhaps further limit Sanchez’s innings in advance of what the Jays hope will be a deep playoff run. He also implied that Sanchez’s ability to continue bouncing back from starts will impact the plan for the remainder of the season, stressing the importance of remaining “fluid and flexible” in this type of situation. “We have all the math, of course,” said Atkins in reference to various innings projections for Sanchez. “Like I said, we’ll get into an area, hopefully we get into that area. He feels good, he’s recovering well, we’re not seeing fatigue in any way and (if) we get into an area that’s unprecedented, we’re hopeful that happens.” Davidi goes on to report that the Blue Jays have been extensively studying dramatic innings increases from years prior, specifically examining Noah Syndergaard and Jon Lester, among others.

Of course, keeping both Sanchez and Liriano in the rotation comes with other roster construction implications. With six starters on board, the Blue Jays will have to either utilize a three-man bench or a six-man bullpen between now and Sept. 1, when rosters expand. The former of those two options is the current alignment, as can be seen on the Blue Jays’ depth chart, leaving the club with a bench consisting of light-hitting Josh Thole, defensive specialist Darwin Barney and a resurgent Melvin Upton Jr. With Troy Tulowitzki attempting to play through a chip fracture in his thumb and Jose Bautista fresh off the DL due to a foot injury, the possibility exists that the Blue Jays could be stretched thin on the position-player front, though rookie right-hander Danny Barnes could be optioned back to Buffalo should the need for an additional bench player arise.

In 139 1/3 innings this season, the 24-year-old Sanchez has pitched to an American-League-leading 2.71 ERA with 7.6 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 57.5 percent ground-ball rate that trails only his own teammate, Stroman, among qualified Major League starters this season.

Mark Teixeira To Retire After 2016 Season

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The Yankees announced a 3pm press conference with first baseman Mark Teixeira today, and while they didn’t list a reason for the call in their press release, ESPN’s Buster Olney reports (via Twitter) that Teixeira is expected to announce his retirement, effective at the end of the current season.

Mark Teixeira

Teixeira, 36, expressed an interest in playing long beyond the current season earlier this year but has battled through torn cartilage in his right knee and some minor neck and foot issues this year while struggling at the plate. The switch-hitting slugger is in the final season of a huge eight-year, $180MM contract and is batting .198/.287/.340 with 10 homers on the season. Of course, one only needs to look at the 2015 campaign to find the most recent season in which Teixeira was not just an above-average performer but one of the more impressive sluggers in all the league. Tex swatted 31 home runs in 2015 and slashed a hefty .255/.357/.548 on the year, which translated to an adjusted OPS that was 46 percent better than the league-average hitter. While he hasn’t played up to his standards this season, Teixeira did crack his 400th career home run this year — becoming just the 55th player to ever reach that lofty total.

The 2016 season, it seems, will be the final chapter in what has been one of the most productive careers since the turn of the century. Teixeira was the fifth overall pick out of Georgia Tech back in 2001 and spent just one season in the minors before debuting with the Rangers in 2003 and never looking back. He’d finish fifth in the American League Rookie of the Year voting that season and go on to win five Gold Glove Awards and three Silver Slugger Awards in a 14-year Major League career. Somewhat surprisingly, Teixeira has only been an All-Star on three occasions, but his track record of dominance at the plate suggests that he probably should’ve participated in the Midsummer Classic on a few more occasions.

From 2004-11, Texiera was one of the more feared hitters in the league, batting .284/.377/.537 with per-season averages of 36 home runs, 37  doubles and 117 RBIs. His bat was 36 percent above the league average over that eight-year stretch, per OPS+, and his career totals to date (.269/.361/.511, 404 homers, 400 doubles) are similarly impressive. Teixeira was a major factor in the Yankees’ 2009 World Series victory in his first season in the Bronx, and he was also the subject of one of the largest trades in the past decade, going from Texas to Atlanta in exchange for Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Matt Harrison and Beau Jones. To this point, Teixeira has been worth 52 wins above replacement, per Baseball-Reference, and 45 WAR in the estimation of Fangraphs. He’ll wrap up a brilliant career with just over $213MM in total earnings.

MLBTR wishes Teixeira the best in what will be the final months of an illustrious career and continued happiness and success in his post-playing days.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

West Notes: Angels, Valencia, Padres, Jones

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The Angels have removed amateur scouting director Ric Wilson from his post, ESPN.com’s Keith Law tweets, though he may stay with the organization in another role. GM Billy Eppler tells Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times that the team hopes Wilson will stick around. He has been with the organization for quite some time, assuming his most recent position in 2011. Though the draft results since that time haven’t been terribly well-regarded, as DiGiovanna notes, the Halos have generally not provided him with advantageous draft positions from which to work and have traded away several of the more promising prospects brought in under Wilson.

Here’s more from out west to round out the evening:

  • Even with Josh Reddick out of the picture, the Athletics continue to use Danny Valencia somewhat sporadically, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. Manager Bob Melvin says the reason is that the organization needs to look to “see what our future is.” While Valencia isn’t a long-term piece, he is controllable for another season and has been highly productive at the plate. It was somewhat surprising he wasn’t dealt at the deadline, but he could be moved in August or over the winter as well.
  • Though he has received quite a lot of criticism (and before that, praise) since taking over as the Padres’ general manager, A.J. Preller has overseen a swift rebuilding of the team’s farm of late, MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell writes. The work has been accomplished through a variety of methods, as Cassavell explains in a long look at the club’s action since the start of 2016. Preller says that the initial investment in veteran assets when he took the helm occurred due to an “opportunity in the short term to try to take a chance to put a competitive team on the field.” But there was also a back-up plan, he suggests: “There was also understanding at the time that we were going to acquire assets that potentially could be valuable to other teams. … As a baseball group, you’re always talking about: ’Here’s the best possible scenario, but also here’s other scenarios.'”
  • The Rangers have moved James Jones from the outfield to the mound, as Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. A hurler in college, the 27-year-old (who is a southpaw) has reached the majors as a position player and has had success at the plate in the upper minors. He struggled to a .232/.297/.330 batting line this year at Triple-A after being acquired (and then outrighted and re-signed) over the winter by Texas.

Reds Outright J.J. Hoover

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The Reds announced on Thursday that right-hander J.J. Hoover has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Louisville. That represents a disappointing end to his work this year in Cincinnati, though a late-year return remains possible.

Entering the year, Hoover was positioned as the Reds’ closer after winning his arbitration hearing in his first year of eligibility. That didn’t last long, though, as he blew his first save opportunity and only ended up converting one on the season.

Hoover ended up being optioned in early May after posting disastrous results in the early going. He showed better immediately upon his return, but coughed up five earned runs in consecutive outings before going out on optional assignment once again. A significant decline in average fastball velocity certainly hasn’t helped. Hoover sits with a 13.50 ERA over 18 2/3 frames at the major league level in 2016, with opponents hitting a ridiculous .345/.433/.750 against him.

Ultimately, Cincinnati decided it couldn’t dedicate a 40-man roster spot to the veteran and decided on today’s outright. As things stand, he looks to be a non-tender candidate in the fall. That being said, Hoover ought to receive attention as a bounce-back candidate. Entering the year, he owned a 3.34 ERA over 223 2/3 major league innings with 9.1 K/9 against 4.1 BB/9, and he has been better this season when pitching at the Triple-A level.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/4/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • Angels outfielder Daniel Nava has been assigned to Triple-A after clearing waivers, the Halos announced. He hasn’t panned out as hoped since signing a $1.375MM deal over the winter, and it doesn’t appear as if the club will end up tendering him a contract this fall. Nava owns a .235/.309/.303 slash over 136 plate appearances on the year, and he is now two seasons removed from the solid offensive numbers he put up with the Red Sox. Still, the 33-year-old’s high-on-base approach would hold plenty of appeal if he can get back on track.
  • The Indians have inked lefty Colt Hynes to a minor league pact, according to the Plain Dealer’s Paul Hoynes (via Twitter). Hynes, 31, will head to Triple-A Columbus. The southpaw reliever has spent the last two years with the Blue Jays organization, briefly appearing in the majors last year. He has carried a sub-3.50 ERA at Triple-A each year, and was especially impressive this season. Over his 37 frames, Hynes retired 10.5 batters per nine via the strikeout while issuing only 1.7 BB/9.

Phillies To Promote Jake Thompson

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As had been widely expected, the Phillies will promote righty Jake Thompson to the big leagues for the first time, per Ryan Lawrence of the Philly Voice (Twitter link). He’ll make his debut start on Saturday.

Mar 3, 2016; Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Jake Thompson (75) warms up before the start of the spring training game against the Houston Astros at Bright House Field. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

The move is partially tied to Philly’s placement of fellow young righty Aaron Nola on the 15-day DL, which opened a rotation spot. But the real driver is Thompson’s performance. Over his 129 2/3 innings on the year in his first attempt at Triple-A, Thompson carries a 2.50 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.

While that strikeout rate isn’t all that compelling, Philadelphia obviously felt it was time to give him a shot at the game’s highest level. The Phils are quickly building a formidable young rotation, and the organization surely hopes not only to give Thompson his first taste of the majors, but also to get a sense of how ready he will be to shoulder a full starter’s load in 2017.

In years past, Thompson has seen his name in headlines this time of year for rather a different reason. After being shipped from the Tigers to the Rangers in 2014’s Joakim Soria deal, Thompson went to the Phils last summer as a piece of the Cole Hamels package. Thompson will again be looking for a new place to stay this August, but this time it’ll be with the same organization.

A second-round pick in the 2012 draft, Thompson has rated as a leaguewide, top-100 prospect entering each of the last two seasons. There are varying ways to characterize his potential, with some giving him a shot at harnessing his four-pitch mix to become a top-of-the-rotation presence and others viewing him more as a durable, solid piece who has a somewhat limited ceiling.

The Phillies will soon begin to get an idea of just what they have in Thompson, who was arguably the key piece in the Hamels swap. Philadelphia’s big league roster already features three very promising young hurlers in Nola, Jerad Eickhoff, and Vincent Velasquez, and Thompson will be bidding to take up a similar place in a new-look staff.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Mariners Place Steve Cishek On DL With Hip Labrum Tear

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5:38pm: Cishek says that it’s actually only a small tear that won’t require surgery, so he may be back after the 15-day minimum, as Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets.

4:58pm: The Mariners announced a series of roster moves today that will shake up the team’s pitching mix. In particular, just-deposed closer Steve Cishek has been placed on the DL with a left hip labrum tear.

Just acquired lefty Ariel Miranda and righty Blake Parker are joining the major league roster. Righty Donn Roach was optioned to open one active roster spot, with Mayckol Guaipe released to free up a slot on the 40-man.

[Related: Updated Mariners Depth Chart]

Cishek signed with Seattle for two years and $10MM over the winter. He has been solid, posting a 3.40 ERA with 11.7 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in his 47 2/3 innings, though he recently lost the closer’s gig after some shaky outings. Cishek did manage to trigger a $500K bonus by recording over 35 games finished before that point, though he’ll miss out on a chance to earn yet more cash through that portion of his contract.

It’s not yet clear what kind of outlook there is for Cishek’s injury, but it certainly sounds like a season-ending type of injury (though it’s not yet clear if surgery is required). Pitchers who have had the ailment in recent years include Tim Lincecum and Michael Pineda; Dan Wade of the Hardball Times provides ample detail on the subject. Seattle will certainly hope that Cishek isn’t out that long, particularly since he’s still under contract for another campaign.

The 25-year-old Guaipe has thrown 34 frames for the big league team over the last two years, but the results haven’t been great. He owns a 5.29 ERA in that span, allowing 42 hits and 17 walks while recording 27 strikeouts. Guaipe has shown well in the upper minors, though, with a 2.87 ERA and 7.1 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9 over 59 2/3 Triple-A frames since the start of 2015.

Pirates Activate Ryan Vogelsong, Release Wilfredo Boscan

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The Pirates have released righty Wilfredo Boscan, per a team announcement. His 40-man spot will go to Ryan Vogelsong, who’ll return after surgery for facial fractures. Infielder Max Moroff was optioned to free up an active-roster slot.

[Related: Updated Pirates Depth Chart]

Boscan, 26, didn’t impress in his first crack at the major league level. But he has shown some promise in the upper minors, including a 3.07 ERA last year at Triple-A. Over his 84 frames in the International League in 2016, Boscan posted a 3.75 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9.

As for Vogelsong, it’s certainly great to see him back in action after he was struck in the face by a pitch in late May. The 39-year-old, who signed with the Bucs for a $2MM guarantee as a free agent, has a 3.74 ERA with 16 strikeouts and ten walks over 21 2/3 innings.

Vogelsong’s tale is well known, but remains remarkable. After struggling for several years with the Giants and then the Bucs, he played for three years in Japan and another in the upper minors before breaking out with San Francisco in 2011. He settled in as a durable innings-eater after two high-quality campaigns, and remains a useful pitcher as he nears his fortieth birthday.

Indians Claim Michael Martinez, Designate Tyler Olson

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The Indians have claimed utilityman Michael Martinez off waivers from the Red Sox, per a team announcement. To clear a 40-man roster spot, the Indians designated lefty Tyler Olson for assignment.

Boston had actually added Martinez from Cleveland not long ago, and now sends him back. The 33-year-old switch-hitter has just 70 MLB plate appearances on the year, over which he carries a .273/.304/.364 batting line.

That doesn’t sound like much production, and it isn’t, but it actually stands quite a bit higher than Martinez’s career .515 OPS in 542 plate appearances. He has continued to draw interest from organizations, though, because of his defensive versatility. Martinez has lined up at every position except for first, pitcher, and catcher.

Olson, 26, was himself a recent waiver mover, with the Indians representing his third team on the year. He has reached the majors, but has received only minimal time there. Over his 95 1/3 career Triple-A innings, Olson has pitched to a 4.81 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 3.0 B/9.

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